A creative garnish

Thanks to The Kitchn blog from Apartment Therapy, my Thanksgiving table is going to have a little something extra on it this year: carrot flowers. These really simple to make veggies make the garnish part of the dish. I'm going to add it into my soup, but it could easily make it into any casserole, stuffing or salad. Click here for step-by-step directions that really mean just an extra two minutes to your normal carrot chopping routine.

Just One Plate, but so much more

One of the owners of Just One Plate e-mailed me recently and I just got around to visiting the site, and wow, I can't believe I waited so long. The site, which is just starting up and will be greatly expanded as the months go on, takes one restaurant, one dish from that restaurant and interviews the chef with 10 questions about the inspiration. Beyond the amazing eye candy of the gorgeous photography, the recipes run the gamut of simple for the everyday chef to complex new trends in gastronomy. I am definitely going to go home and make some of these creations, namely the marinated skirt steak with avocado corn relish from Border Grill and the tuna tartar cannoli from Charlie Palmer (pictured above).

Making an impression

I uncovered this photo while cleaning out my desktop folders this morning and unfortunately I have no clue where I ever got it from, but the idea is fantastic. Personally, I don't like mushrooms (it's something about that slimy fungus thing), but it's so cute that I may just touch one long enough to slice it up for these sandwiches. Perfect for entertaining, what a great way to jazz up a simple grilled cheese or, well, anything grilled or griddled. You could even do it on smaller, tea-sized sandwiches. Too cute.

Perfectly novel baker

I just couldn't contain the giggle once I realized what exactly this was: a giant cupcake cake mold. This Wilton cast pan is actually right on mark as the cupcake couldn't be more popular than it is right now, and this is simply a fun take on the idea. For $27.99, it's a tad pricey for such a novelty, but if you have a bridal shower or kid's birthday party coming up, this could be the perfect cake starter.


UPDATE: Surfing around the Sur la Table Web site, I found the cupcake pan there, too. I actually happen to like Target's image better, but here is another pic to demonstrate the creativity of this gadget.